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NHS waiting times
Data through May 2026. NHS source.
Across NHS hospitals in England, the median wait for Trauma and Orthopaedic Service — the specialty most back pain (musculoskeletal) cases are routed to — is 13 weeks, with 6 in 10 patients seen within the 18-week NHS Constitution target. Important context: back pain triage covers a wide range — most patients go through Physiotherapy or Pain Medicine first, and the wait below is for the Trauma & Orthopaedic outpatient appointment, not surgery.
The national median NHS wait for Back pain (musculoskeletal) is 13 weeks as of May 2026, across 311 NHS trusts and independent providers reporting to the NHS, and 9 in 10 current patients are within 40 weeks. But the wait varies significantly between trusts — see the full ranking to find the shortest wait near you.
The median shows time waited so far by the current list — a new routine referral will often wait longer. Why these differ →
Top 10 NHS trusts publishing Trauma and Orthopaedic Service data, ranked by shortest median wait. Want the full ranking? See all trusts on the Trauma and Orthopaedic Service national page →
Hospitals ranked by shortest wait within travelling distance of each city.
The ranking above is national. To rank hospitals by distance from your postcode, search with your postcode below.
Search by postcode →